SBS down under starts filming local adaptation of BBC scripted series Guilt

SBS and BBC Studios Productions Australia have begun filming thriller Guilt

Australia’s multi-cultural broadcaster SBS and BBC Studios Productions Australia have begun filming an adaptation of the BBC’s Scottish mystery thriller series Guilt.

Currently being filmed in Western Australia, the four-part series stars Tasma Walton (The Twelve) and Hunter Page-Lochard (The Newsreader) as two feuding siblings forced to work together to evade an accidental hit-and-run death that spirals out of control in their hometown of Fremantle.

The Australian adaptation has been led by writer and executive producer Kodie Bedford (Return to Paradise) and screenwriter Stuart Page (Total Control), who also wrote the series.

The original, written and created by Neil Forsyth, ran for three seasons between 2019 and 2023 on BBC Two.

“This series is a perfect example of BBC Studios’ ambition to craft and share the world’s most compelling stories – unapologetically Western Australian, darkly funny, and deeply human,” said Kylie Washington, executive VP and general manager of global entertainment Australia at BBC Studios ANZ.

The series will be directed by Beck Cole (Deadloch), produced by Andy Walker (Deadloch,) and executive produced by Washington (Ghosts Australia) and Bedford (Return to Paradise). International sales will be handled by Federation Studios.

The production has been supported by the Western Australian (WA) Production Attraction Incentive, with the project expected to inject more than A$5m (US$3.24m) into the WA economy and create 250 jobs for local screen practitioners with up to 20 local cast speaking roles.

The production is the latest in a string of projects drawn to WA, which from July 1 is offering the highest rebate incentive for post- production projects nationally.

Screenwest chief Rikki Lea Bestall said: “This is the most competitive post-production incentive in Australia and is squarely aimed at encouraging more post-production projects to Western Australia to do business with our skilled practitioners, from editors to sound designers, VFX artists and animators.”

The enhanced incentive comes at a boom time for Screenwest and the WA screen sector with current productions currently filming including the Paramount/BBC Studios Australian version of Ghosts and the new Perth Film Studios slated to open next year.